A Fresh Start
by aarrimas
Summary: Daphne's relationship with her father is not a good one. He drinks too much and gets angry too often and doesn't follow through. But despite all his flaws, she still loves. She just has to decide whether she loves herself more.


**Disclaimer; nothing you recognise belongs to me.**

 **A/N: For the Hogwarts Challenges and Assignments Round Two. I chose the prompt 'write about someone removing something or someone from their life.'**

 **Word Count: 1671**

* * *

When Daphne was a little girl she used to have an obsession with dolls. Big dolls, small dolls, rag dolls, porcelain dolls; it didn't matter. If it was a doll, you could guarantee that she wanted it.

Back then she was dedicated to collecting them. Every time she went to the shops she would always walk towards the toy section, scanning the aisles for a doll she didn't own. And if she did end up finding one she would beg and beg her mother to buy it for her, promising to behave for the next couple of weeks as long as it could be hers.

Her younger sister Astoria loved it too, always joining in whenever it was time to brush their hair or give them a bath. It was something they had in common, something they could bond over.

Whenever they had enough spare time the two of them would organise a tea party, both of them dressing up in fancy clothes and using the expensive china. It was one of their better times.

Her father was probably the only one that really had a problem with it.

Enoch Greengrass considered himself to be an honourable man. After all, he was a respected pureblood and a valued member of the wizarding community. He had a reputation, one that he wanted to uphold. He couldn't have his eldest daughter ruining his image and making him look weak just because she played with dolls.

His reputation meant everything to him, sometimes even more than his humanity.

Daphne can still remember the night where things went horribly wrong, where his behaviour finally escalated and he became someone she didn't like.

Her parents were arguing in the kitchen, her father yelling that Daphne shouldn't be allowed to play with the dolls, that it was too childish. It was the same fight that they had been having for months, one that her mum usually won. This time was different though, this time he had already made up his mind.

She remembers how he came in, his breath stinking of firewhiskey and his eyes filled with rage. She remembers how she quivered in the corner, terrified as she watched him throw the shelf so hard across the room that it hit the wall and shattered.

She remembers how she screamed, tears filling up her eyes as her dad just smiled, happy with his work. And for a while he just stood there, waiting to see what would happen next.

Eventually, he left the room and Daphne couldn't help but be relieved that it was finally over. She sat there, staring at the destruction that surrounded her.

When he came back, he didn't remember what he did. Instead, he completely forgot the pain he caused and the damage he did. He just wiped it away from his memory. Daphne wished it was just that easy.

She hasn't bought a doll since.

* * *

Back when Astoria was eight she had a birthday party, one with big balloons and important guests. It was her first proper party, one that was held in entirely in her honour. Their mum had spent weeks and weeks preparing for it, she just wanted it to be perfect.

And for the most part, it was. For the most part, everything was exactly like their mum had planned. It was beautiful and colourful and exciting. It was exactly the type of party that an eight-year-old could only dream of.

But he still managed to find a way to ruin it, to create a stain on a memory that should've been amazing for Astoria.

He decided not to show up, even after he promised that he would.

And the worst thing about that was that weeks beforehand he seemed excited. He said that he couldn't wait. He said that it was a perfect way to put the bad times behind them. He said that he would be there. But he wasn't.

Instead of actually attending the party and proving to his family that he meant what he said, he decided that he had better things to do.

He would rather be at the pub drinking and let down everyone who had ever supported him. He would rather be an alcoholic than a father.

Astoria wasn't a big fan of birthday parties after that, she would always rather stay home than have a big celebration. Their father's word didn't mean as much as it used to either.

* * *

A massive grin started to spread across her face as she watched her sister dance. Her elegant white dress complimenting her figure as she spun and her simple makeup accentuating her beauty as she smiled. She was stunning. And as her newly pronounced husband twirled her around the dance floor she was also the happiest she had ever been.

Seeing Astoria this happy brought Daphne an immeasurable amount of joy. It made her heart soar and her stomach fill with butterflies because she knew that no one deserved this more than Astoria.

Astoria had always been the kindest person in the room, the person who thought of others first. She was the type of person who always had love to give and always wanted to give it.

She was the person you came to when you needed a hug, the person you told your good news to first. She was everyone's biggest supporter, a constant cheerleader to all her loved ones. And she deserved every ounce of happiness that this world had to give.

"She looks beautiful doesn't she?" Her mother asked with a sad smile.

Daphne nods, her eyes filled with tears as she watched her younger sister giggle.

"Yeah, she does."

A massive grin started to spread across her face as she watched her sister dance. Her elegant white dress complimenting her figure as she spun and her simple makeup accentuating her beauty as she smiled. She was stunning. And as her newly pronounced husband twirled her around the dance floor she was also the happiest she had ever been.

Seeing Astoria this happy brought Daphne an immeasurable amount of joy. It made her heart soar and her stomach fill with butterflies because she knew that no one deserved this more than Astoria.

Astoria had always been the kindest person in the room, the person who thought of others first. She was the type of person who always had love to give and always wanted to give it.

She was the person you came to when you needed a hug, the person you told your good news to first. She was everyone's biggest supporter, a constant cheerleader to all her loved ones. And she deserved every ounce of happiness that this world had to give.

"She looks beautiful doesn't she?" Her mother asked with a smile.

Daphne nodded, tears sprouting to her eyes as she watched her younger sister giggle.

"Yeah, she does."

* * *

Your family are supposed to be the most important thing in your life. They are supposed to be your everything, your biggest concern. They are supposed to be the people that you would sacrifice everything for.

People always say that your family are your biggest supporter, that they are the ones who will love you unconditionally. Apparently, they are the people who love and care for you most in this world, even if they don't always show it.

And to Daphne, that sounds like a lot of excuses. The fact that you love someone does not give you the right to hurt them. In fact, that usually makes it worse.

All of Daphne's life she had been told that even though her dad did bad things it didn't make him a bad person. She had been told the importance of family and the importance of trust. She had to have faith in him and believe that he loved her even though he never said it.

And that made her feel crap, something that Daphne was done feeling. Instead, she wanted to feel good about herself.

She wanted to be influenced by her own decisions, instead of someone else's. She wanted to sit still when someone made a loud noise. She wanted to make mistakes without freaking out.

She just wanted to be happy. She just wanted to be who she was before.

* * *

She finished her last sentence, the panic sitting in her chest starting to rise as she realised what this all meant. This was life-changing, it was something she would always remember. And it was all in a letter.

She took a deep breath and started to rub her eyes. Merlin, she was tired. The whole night before was spent writing and making sure that she got her message across, that she said what she wanted to. And she hoped that she did. But as soon as this letter is sent, this no longer becomes her problem.

Now, her only problems are getting enough sleep and fitting her friends into her busy schedule. As soon as this letter is sent, she doesn't need to worry about her father dying early or her mother finding his body. She doesn't need to be scared that people might yell at her or they might come too close.

Because after this letter is sent and the message is received, she is no longer held back by her past. Because even though she loves her dad, she loves herself more. And she knows that her dad's drunken apologies and half-assed excuses aren't enough anymore, because she is worth more than that.

She closes the letter into the envelope and gives it to her spotty owl Briggs. She watches as he flutters away, his wings flapping in the air as he flies free in the sky. And she realises, she's now free too. Because her dad is no longer holding her back.


End file.
